@.twtttl: #jesuschrist #fyp #orthodoxy #Christianity #georgia On 1 May 1965, during the May Day demonstration, Hieromonk Gabriel set fire to a large portrait of Lenin. The incident was later reported in the Western Orthodox publication Death to the World in 1994. He addressed the crowd with the following statement: “No glory should be given to this deceased man, but glory to Christ, who conquered death and bestowed upon us eternal life.” He was subsequently severely beaten by the crowd. A high-level emergency response was declared, and he was saved from possible death through the intervention of servicemen He was arrested in a severely injured state, suffering a broken jaw and multiple fractures, and taken to a KGB isolation facility. Investigators attempted to coerce him into confessing that the act had been ordered by church authorities, promising leniency in exchange. He refused and again referred to Lenin as a "beast", for which he was further beaten. The incident attracted international attention and was reported in European and American newspapers. Instead of execution, he was committed to a psychiatric hospital in August 1965 and released three months later, partly due to the intervention of academician Avlipi Zurabashvili. Although he retained the rank of Priest, he was prohibited from performing liturgical service. He continued to attend services as a lay participant and received communion as an ordinary believer. He was repeatedly summoned by the KGB and subjected to physical abuse. During this period, he adopted the lifestyle of a fool-for-Christ, engaging in unconventional public behavior and open street preaching.

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Tuesday 18 August 2026 11:33:26 GMT